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Passenger in trouble for opening plane emergency door just to 'get fresh air'

An airline passenger is in trouble, after he opened the emergency exit on a plane to get air because he thought the cabin was "too stuffy and hot".

The man, identified only as Chen, was detained by authorities for 15 days following the incident at Nanjiao Airport, in Mianyang City, southwest China and fined thousands of pounds.

According to The Independent, the low-cost carrier Lucky Air flight from the southern city of Sanya, on Hainan Island, had landed, when the passenger who was waiting in the aisle to disembark opened the door.

Chinese authorities told the South China Morning Post that the 25-year-old claimed he had "waited in the aisle for 10 minutes as passengers left the plane" and that the cabin was "too stuffy and too hot".

In an attempt to get some fresh air, Chen then lifted the latch on the plane’s emergency exit, causing the door to fall off and activating the evacuation slide.

"I just pushed down on the window handle beside me," he reportedly told investigators. "When the door fell out, I panicked."

Mr Chen was immediately arrested by airport police and later handed over to Mianyang Public Security Bureau personnel, who kept him in detention and questioned him for 15 days.

Mianyang City’s civil aviation administration said Mr Chen’s actions caused major flight delays, while the bill for work to rectify his mistake ran upwards of 100,000 Yuan (£11,500).

Authorities said the incident may have damaged the jet’s evacuation slide, meaning costs could eventually rise several times higher.

Mr Chen was reportedly fined 70,000 Yuan (£8,000) to cover the Lucky Air’s costs, while the airline suggested it may yet pursue further damages from the unfortunate passenger.

Passenger in trouble for opening plane emergency door just to 'get fresh air'
Reviewed by Emem Etto
on
May 04, 2018
Rating: 5